Week Eleven - Neurodivergence & the Workplace by Kari Weaver

2023-10-31 05:26:12 UTC

“This pressure triggers an unconscious strategy called neurotypical-passing, masking, or camouflaging. It can look like an autistic person forcing themselves to make eye contact even when it is uncomfortable, attending a networking event at the cost of being ill from the loud noise, or practicing for hours to effectively small talk with neurotypical hiring managers. Research indicates that camouflaging is unsustainable and damaging. It can result in autistic burnout, illness, and job loss.”

2023-10-31 05:30:08 UTC

When you think about the nature of masking, its forces autistic people into this state that reminds them that they themselves can never really be accepted as themselves, they can never be seen as people worth accommodating for, it forces them in the mindset that makes them believe that changing fundamentally is the only way they’d be tolerable in society.--Another thing that was brought up in the podcast is disclosure and have that choice is important. Masking is not something you have autonomy over, it is a survival tactic used by autistics to fit better into neurotypical society.

2023-10-31 12:16:41 UTC

Industrial and organizational psychology

“The specialty of industrial-organizational psychology (also called I/O psychology) is characterized by the scientific study of human behavior in organizations and the workplace. The specialty focuses on deriving principles of individual, group and organizational behavior and applying this knowledge to the solution of problems at work.”

2023-10-31 12:17:23 UTC

Autism Doesn’t Hold People Back at Work - Discrimination Does, “Did you know that autistic professionals can be up to 140% more productive than the typical employee when properly matched to jobs? While we should not generalize such results to the entire population, research shows that professionals on the autism spectrum bring valuable strengths to the workplace, including (but not limited to) understanding complex systems, independently focusing on tasks, reliability, and loyalty.”

2023-10-31 12:18:51 UTC

“And so the first step of allyship for me is always just to assume you already have folks in the room, whether or not they’ve disclosed, whether or not you know it, assume they are, and then act accordingly”

2023-10-31 12:18:57 UTC

“verbal autistic people are assumed not to have any struggles, while those using communication devices might be underestimated.”

2023-10-31 12:19:31 UTC

“Still, in the U.K., the unemployment rate for autistic people is as high as 78%. In the U.S., that number jumps to 85%.”

2023-10-31 12:21:20 UTC

APA Article - “Specialized knowledge and training in the science of behavior in the workplace requires in-depth knowledge of organizational development, attitudes, career development, decision theory, human performance and human factors, consumer behavior, small group theory and process, criterion theory and development, job and task analysis and individual assessment.”

Podcast Thought - After hearing Nate talking about the upkeep being exhausting, I feel that there are so many layers to deal with when it comes to someone who is neurodivergent. Not only do you have to keep up with the work, which may be a challenge in and of itself, but other factors with the environment, getting into a job, finding if a job is the right fit, or seeing what you can do to improve the situation you work in is, wow, that’s a lot.

2023-10-31 12:27:40 UTC

"And I’d imagine being able to work from home, as you were saying before, and having more control over your sensory environment probably helped realize like, oh, hey, I feel different here and I can actually control this environment and it makes a difference."